Is Oakland ready for its next big earthquake?

Oakland is overdue for a major earthquake. The Hayward Fault, which runs along Highway 13 at the foot of the Oakland hills and streams through the Oakland Zoo and Mills College, has produced a significant earthquake on average every 140 years for nearly the past millennium. The last substantial earthquake caused by this fault was in 1868 … that was 143 years ago.

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Mayor Quan reflects on first 100 days in office

Jean Quan

Gearing up for next week’s anniversary of 100 days in office, Mayor Jean Quan spoke to the press on Thursday about her accomplishments and hopes for the upcoming months. “It seems like its gone very fast,” she said. “We’ve worked very hard to launch Oakland in a new footing.”

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Quan, Swanson speak in support of federal DREAM Act

Jean Quan

Oakland mayor-elect Jean Quan, Assemblymember Sandre Swanson, and other local leaders joined a handful of Oakland students on the steps of City Hall on Thursday afternoon to urge Congress to pass the federal DREAM Act, which would give the children of illegal immigrants a pathway to citizenship.

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Childhood development centers get a month’s reprieve

Teachers searching for new jobs and parents looking for new childcare options got some last-minute good news—the seven childhood development centers slated to close last Friday due to budget cuts will remain open for another month. The Oakland Unified School District announced it was allocating $400,000 in federal stimulus money to keep the centers running through the end of August.

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Campaign for publicly-funded elections kicks off in Oakland

While corporations, lobbyists and special interest groups may have gloated over the Supreme Court’s ruling last month that decreed that the government has no power to ban corporate spending in political campaigns, if Californian voters pass Proposition 15 in the June 8th election, they may have another chance to set limits on corporate election spending.

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